Section 2: Five Developmental Theories

Developmental theories provide counsellors with a framework to explore and understand clients’ development, behaviour, and presenting issues. However, as each theory has its strengths and weaknesses, counsellors need to learn to evaluate theories critically and to select and use appropriate ones for particular purposes.

In this section, you will learn about four influential developmental theories that significantly contributed to the contemporary understanding of human development. You will notice that these theories differ in their approach to understanding development. While Freud’s and Erikson’s theories explore critical developmental changes throughout the lifespan, for example, Bowlby’s focuses on the interpersonal influence in development; Piaget’s specifically addresses cognitive development; and Maslow’s hierarchy of needs emphasises motivation and capacity for change. Each theory varies in its ideas about human nature and development and offers a different perspective on why people develop and behave as they do. We will begin with Freud’s psychoanalytic theory.

Developed by Sigmund Freud in the early 20th century, the psychoanalytic theory was one of the earliest attempts to systematically describe, explain, and predict human behaviour and development. The psychoanalytic approach places great emphasis on “the importance of unconscious motivations, emotional conflicts and early experiences for shaping personality and behaviours” (Sigelman, De George, Cunial, & Rider, 2019, p. 54). Freud believed that a person’s behaviours are largely driven by unconscious biological drives and that personality is likely to have formed in the early years, influenced by experiences in the family. He believed that successful integration between the three parts of self over five stages of development was the key to healthy development (Berk, 2014; Steinberg, Bornstein, Vandell, & Rook, 2011).

Structural Model of Personality

These three key components are the id, ego and superego. Freud believed that each had its own functions and ways of operating and that their conflicts and interactions drove many aspects of personality and behaviour.

“The id, the largest portion of the mind, is the source of basic biological needs and desires.

The ego, the conscious, rational part of personality, emerges in early infancy to redirect the id’s impulses so they are discharged on appropriate objects at acceptable places and times.

Between 3 and 6 years of age, the superego, or conscience, develops as parents insist that children conform to the values of society. Now the ego faces the increasingly complex task of reconciling the demands of the id, the external world, and conscience (Freud, 1923/1974). For example, when the id impulse to grab an attractive toy from a playmate confronts the superego’s warning that such behaviour is wrong, the ego must mediate between these two forces, deciding which will win the inner struggle or, alternatively, work out a compromise, such as asking for a turn with the toy. According to Freud, the relations established among the id, ego, and superego during the preschool years determine the individual’s basic personality.”

^{Berk, 2014, p. 15}

A useful way to remember these components is to use the analogy of child, adult, and parent:

In popular usage, the word ‘ego’ is usually used in a very different manner, including describing those characteristics Freud would have associated with the id. If, for example, a young man is boasting and showing off, then someone might say, “Doesn’t he have a big ego!”

From the psychoanalytic perspective, the dynamic between id, ego, and superego provides a way to understand individual personality differences and psychological problems (Sigelman et al., 2019). Freud thought that these three components are inevitably in conflict and that our development depends on our ability to strengthen the ego (adult), the role of which is to resolve the conflict between the id (child) and (superego) parent.

Freud, however, believed that people are generally not usually aware of the working of these components or of their interactions, as they happen mainly in our ‘unconscious’ minds.

Levels of Awareness

Freud proposed three levels of awareness – conscious, preconscious, and unconscious – and that our unconscious minds are responsible for much of our behaviour.

^{Weiten, 2017}

^{Adapted from Weiten, 2017, p. 380}

The iceberg analogy is commonly used to explain Freud’s conceptualisation of the mind. Imagine that your mind is an iceberg like the one in the following figure:

^{Weiten, 2017, p. 384}

The part of the iceberg that is visible from the outside is the conscious mind; the preconscious mind is just beneath the surface of the water, and the unconscious mind is a big part of its mass hidden well below the water. According to Freud, id is completely unconscious, but ego and superego can operate at all three levels of consciousness (Weiten, 2017). Now, let’s look at an example of how Freud’s model of personality and level of consciousness can be applied to an individual in need of counselling.

Whilst Freud believed that conflicts between the id, ego, and superego occur almost entirely in our unconscious minds, they often cause us anxiety, which is an unpleasant feeling of dread that emerges to the surface of consciousness (Corey, 2017). To avoid becoming overwhelmed by this unpleasant anxiety, Freud suggested that we unconsciously engage in various defence mechanisms to manage it.

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Defence Mechanisms

Defence mechanisms are ego-based strategies that we use in response to the unpleasant emotions we experience, such as anxiety. According to Corey (2017), defence mechanisms have two common features: first, these mechanisms help us feel better by denying or distorting reality; second, they function on an unconscious level. Despite this, the use of defence mechanisms is viewed as normal, adaptive behaviour (rather than being pathological), so long as they do not become a way of living that avoids reality. Types of defence mechanisms Freud proposed include:

^{Adapted from Bornstein, 2020; Corey, 2017, pp. 62-63}

You may recall using some of the defence mechanisms in your personal experience, despite being unaware of this at the time. Remember that Freud suggested we engage in these mechanisms unconsciously to protect ourselves from uncomfortable or distressing thoughts and emotions, but we can become aware of our tendency to use them when we pay conscious attention.

Although defence mechanisms may offer protection by reducing anxiety, overreliance on them may result in problems with distortion of reality and prevent people from moving forward and making changes in their lives. You will learn more about how counsellors can help clients to develop insights into their use of defence mechanisms later in this section.

It is important to note, however, that many aspects of Freud’s theory, including some of the details of unconscious processes and motivations that he describes, have been discredited and that others are without evidence to support them.

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Stages of Psychosexual Development

Freud’s theory of psychosexual development describes four developmental stages and a latency (inactive) period. Freud believed that progress through these stages was driven by biological maturation (i.e., the unfolding of the genetic blueprint) in combination with environmental influences. This process forces individuals to face key tasks inherent to each stage. At each psychosexual stage, the id’s impulses come into conflict with social demands.

Harsh child-rearing methods were theorised as heightening this conflict and the child’s anxiety, leading to fixations or complexes (i.e., an unresolved unconscious conflict; Sommers-Flanagan & Sommers-Flanagan, 2015).

However, while it is important that you are familiar with Freud’s ideas, due to their influence, it is also important that you know that they are largely considered outdated and that his theory of psychosexual development is unlikely to be accurate. For example, the psychosexual theory has not been supported by research and is very unlikely to be accurate.

The stages of development that Freud proposed are outlined in the following table. Freud believed it was a parents’ job to create an appropriate balance between too little or too much gratification of each impulse at each stage and that creating an appropriate balance would result in well-adjusted adults (Berk, 2014).

^{Adapted from Berk, 2014, p. 16}

Freud also suggested that unresolved issues from the three early psychosexual stages often brought people to counselling:

• Oral stage, which deals with the inability to trust oneself and others, resulting in fear of loving and forming close relationships and low self-esteem.
• Anal stage, which deals with the inability to recognise and express anger, leading to the denial of one’s own power as a person and the lack of a sense of autonomy.
• Phallic stage, which deals with the inability to fully accept one’s sexuality and sexual feelings, and also to difficulty in accepting oneself as a man or woman.

According to the Freudian psychoanalytic view, these three areas of personal and social development – love and trust, dealing with negative feelings, and developing a positive acceptance of sexuality – are grounded in the first 6 years of life. This period is the foundation on which later personality development is built. When a child’s needs are not adequately met during these stages of development, an individual may become fixated at that stage and behave in psychologically immature ways later on in life.

^{Adapted from Corey, 2017, pp. 63-64}

From this perspective, behaviours such as smoking and overeating could be traced back to the deprivation of the individual’s needs in the oral stage (Hoffnung et al., 2016). Over-indulgence during the oral stage would also result in over-dependence on others as an adult.

Freud believed that personality is determined in these early years of life, as the impacts of unfavourable experiences are often revealed in adult personality traits (Sigelman et al., 2019). Deprivation of needs at the oral stage, for example, could result in the individual having the urge to manipulate others to fulfil their needs later in life. Being overly influenced by experience in a particular stage or being ‘stuck’ in that stage is known as fixation (Hoffnung et al.).

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Contributions and Limitations in Counselling

Freud’s psychoanalytical approach was one of the first to recognise the importance of early development and suggests that our earlier life experiences can have long-term impacts:

This implies that clients’ presenting issues might be related to their experiences in their early years. Whilst this is not suggesting that counsellors should encourage clients to dwell in the past, it is often useful for counsellors to help clients explore their personal history to gain a deeper understanding of the roots of their presenting issues.

Another useful contribution of psychoanalytic theory is its focus on the concept of the unconscious (Sigelman & Rider, 2018). The initial presentation of an issue or concern in counselling does not always represent the essential issue the client is struggling with. However, it is important to remember it is not always helpful to directly identify or challenge defences or try to highlight things that clients are unconscious of. These can serve important protective functions. In addition, it is difficult to know for certain if people are using defence mechanisms or not (and some defence mechanisms are not supported by evidence).

Instead of taking a Freudian approach to defence mechanisms, it may be more useful to consider clients – and counsellors, for that matter – as not being aware of everything they are experiencing and as potentially using mental strategies (i.e., defence mechanisms) in some circumstances. As such, it can be useful to adopt a tentative, questioning stance when it comes to things that clients may not be aware of and when challenging possible distortions in the client’s perspective. It is then up to the client to decide whether they are ready to engage with what might be beyond their current awareness. The counsellor can also help clients develop healthier strategies to deal with underlying issues. However, counsellors also need to be aware that facilitating the recognition of unconscious thoughts or emotions when the client is not ready is potentially harmful, so a great deal of care in challenging is required.

In general, Freud’s psychoanalytic theory is considered outdated, and few counsellors directly apply it to client work. His theory has been criticised for overemphasising sexual drives and limited application to different cultures (Hoffnung et al., 2016). Moreover, his theory focusses predominantly on internal, psychological forces as the agents driving development, which are vague and difficult or impossible to directly observe or study (Sigelman & Rider, 2018). The psychoanalytic approach has largely been put aside for more modern theories that are more testable and precise, have different foci, and recognise a broader range of influences. Nevertheless, Freud’s theory has had great influence over later approaches in understanding personality and behaviours in the counselling field. In addition, his recognition of unconscious thoughts and feelings and that early experience can have an ongoing influence remains important.

Freud’s 5 Stages of Psychosexual Development

Freud’s theory of psychosexual development claims that as we grow up, we pass through five critical phases which are defined by our sexual drive, also called libido, concentrating on specific erogenous zones.

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Erikson expanded on Freud’s psychosexual stages and proposed eight psychosocial stages, each with a crisis each person must navigate in order to develop a healthy personality (Sigelman et al., 2019). Unlike Freud, who focused on internal, biological drives, Erikson viewed personality development as a ‘psychosocial’ process. He believed that psychological and social factors (such as family, friends, relationships, work, culture, and so on) influenced personality, behaviour, and development. Erikson also viewed development as a life-long process. Therefore, he could be considered the first true lifespan development theorist. Erikson believed that developmental changes were driven by the following:

These eight psychosocial stages and their crises are shown in the following table.

^{Adapted from Sigelman et al., 2019, p. 57}

8 Stages of Development by Erik Erikson

The following video describes Erik Erikson's eight stages of psychosocial development.

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According to Erikson, if individuals successfully resolve the developmental crisis at each stage, they will likely develop a “fully functioning personality” (Hoffnung et al., 2016, p. 40). They establish trust in others, a sense of identity, intimate relationships, and a desire to help the next generation prepare for the future. Failure to successfully resolve a crisis can result not only in difficulties related to that particular stage but also in later stages (Sigelman et al., 2019). A person who is experiencing issues with intimacy, for example, may have had earlier issues with trust; a problem in identity may have its roots in unresolved autonomy and initiative crises.

Erikson put a great deal of emphasis on adolescence, as he believed that the task of developing a strong sense of identity (identity vs role confusion) was dependent on early experiences and continued through adulthood (Hoffnung et al., 2016). Adolescents are exposed to many influences and possible options, particularly as they become more independent. This can result in confusion about who they are and what they want. If adolescents can successfully resolve this conflict by exploring their own values and goals, they will develop a strong and stable sense of self. However, they may develop an uncertain and fragile sense of self if they cannot resolve the developmental crisis.

For example, an adolescent who grows up in a restrictive, overly protective family and has not successfully explored or resolved the demands of society may be left with a lingering conflict and uncertainty about their own identity and place in the world. They may grow into an adult who relies very heavily on what others tell them to do rather than being able to balance social demands with their own psychological needs. In fact, they may struggle with an overall sense of who they are or what they want.

Another important stage occurs in midlife, a time when people are likely to experience significant events such as job changes, parental deaths, relationship breakdowns, and so on. According to Erikson, the main developmental task at this point is to develop generativity through activities that involve generating or producing for the welfare of future generations (Sigelman et al., 2019). Failure to complete this developmental task may lead to stagnation – a feeling that one has not accomplished anything meaningful in life.

Erikson believed that the ability to achieve generativity depended on the successful resolution of earlier stages of development, most importantly the identity stage (Sigelman et al.). So Erikson might have predicted the adolescent previously described would have trouble navigating this stage, having failed to resolve the identity versus role confusion crisis.

Contributions And Limitations in Counselling

A major strength of Erikson’s theory is that it extends across the lifespan and offers a more holistic view of development than Freud’s (Marcia & Josselson, 2013). As such, Erikson’s psychosocial stages can be useful in the helping professions, including counselling.

Erikson’s psychosocial stages can help counsellors consider the key developmental challenges that clients might face in particular life stages and whether previous unresolved developmental tasks could be having an influence. Difficulties that clients experience can be viewed in relation to ‘blockages’ in psychosocial growth and difficulties negotiating developmental tasks.

More importantly, Erikson believed that poorly resolved crises could be resolved in later stages (Hoffnung et al., 2016). To a larger extent, Erikson viewed these crises as opposing possibilities, with the choices we make at each stage shaping how our life develops (Corey, 2017). From this perspective, counsellors can help clients resolve unresolved crises (Capuzzi, Stauffer, & O’Neil, 2016). Whilst this can involve exploring the client’s history, the focus of counselling is not on the past issues (which are beyond the client’s control) but on developing skills and strengths for the future.

However, while Erikson’s theory sets out realistic developmental goals, it does not identify interventions that might help achieve them (Marcia & Josselson, 2013). Counsellors, therefore, might use psychosocial theory to help understand client issues, but they need to combine this with appropriate counselling techniques or skills from other approaches tailored to account for the client’s age and psychosocial stage. For example, a client who has not resolved the earlier stage of identity versus role confusion may be supported in establishing their identity by exploring their unique abilities, needs, values and goals. Let’s look at an example of how Erikson’s theory can be applied to counselling.

Guided by Erikson’s theory, the counsellor in the case study explores Barbara’s caregiver role and the changes to help understand the challenges she is facing. This also helps the counsellor normalise Barbara’s experience. (Normalising involves helping clients recognise that an aspect of their experience is shared by others. The counsellor in the case study does this when they say, “it is not unusual …”.) However, the counsellor is careful not to ‘diagnose’ Barbara with the stages and checks in to see whether their understanding of Barbara’s experience is accurate.

An alternative path could have been for the counsellor to help Barbara explore earlier stages, such as identity versus role confusion, as unresolved crises in prior stages could also lead to difficulty in resolving later stages. The counsellor goes on to support Barbara in developing appropriate strategies to help her achieve relevant goals at this stage.

Erikson’s psychosocial theory was not a replacement for Freud’s psychosexual theory but a further development of it. In addition, they are both stage theories – that is, they both posit that people go through set processes in a particular order (Sigelman et al., 2019). They also both believe that failure to progress through a stage effectively causes problems later. Nevertheless, Erikson’s theory differs from Freud’s in at least four ways:

Whilst both Erikson’s and Freud’s theories are useful to a certain extent in describing the development across the lifespan, they are not as useful in helping us understand why and how the development in these stages occurs (Sigelman et al., 2019). Like Freud’s theory, Erikson’s theory is also difficult to test – for instance, it is hard to prove that there are exactly eight stages and that everyone passes through these stages in the same order (Lilienfeld et al., 2019). When applying Erikson’s theory, counsellors must remember that clients may not follow all set stages in the same order or at the same time.

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Initially developed by Bowlby (and elaborated by Ainsworth), attachment theory suggests that infants have a biological tendency to form an attachment – “a strong affectional tie” – with their parents or caregiver (Sigelman et al., p. 560). The quality of such emotional bonds affects the development of personality and resulting behaviours as the child grows and relates to others.

Bowlby believed that early interactions or patterns of attachment with significant caregivers shaped the individual's expectations about relationships, which have lasting impacts on later interpersonal relationships. For example, if you experienced loving and accepting interactions with your parents as a

young child, you are likely to expect that you are lovable and trust others to care for you in later relationships as well. These expectations guide how you’d behave in these relationships, which affects how others respond to you subsequently.

On the contrary, if you have experienced your parents as harsh and judgemental, you may become self-critical and feel you can never live up to other people’s standards, or believe you will only be loved when you are ‘perfect’. These expectations become a ‘template’ as to how you would relate to others in life.

Bowlby’s attachment theory is based on the following concepts:

• People are born biologically pre-programmed to form attachments with others because this will help them to survive.
• Attachment behaviours are designed to ensure closeness and contact with the mother or attachment figure. Crying and distress behaviours are activated when this closeness is threatened, for example, by physical separation from the attachment figure. These are designed to elicit care and responsiveness.
• When this care and responsiveness is not given or is given inconsistently over an extended period, the child develops maladaptive coping methods, resulting in either avoidant or resistant behaviour. The child also develops a dysfunctional concept of self, as shown in the following diagram:

^{Adapted from McLeod, 2017}

The Attachment Theory: How Childhood Affects Life

The attachment theory argues that a strong emotional and physical bond to one primary caregiver in our first years is critical to our development. If our bonding is strong and we are securely attached, we feel safe exploring the world. If our bond is weak, we feel insecurely attached. We are afraid to leave or explore a rather scary-looking world.

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Attachment Styles and Development

According to Bowlby’s theory, a child’s emotional and behavioural development is related to the way in which they were able to attach to (i.e., form a bond with) their mother or primary caregiver.

Securely attached children develop a positive internal working model of themselves and have mental representations or ‘templates’ of others as being helpful while viewing themselves as worthy of respect. Avoidant children tend to think of themselves as unworthy and unacceptable, while children with an ambivalent/resistant attachment style tend to have a negative self-image and exaggerate their emotional responses as a way to gain attention. These mental representations guide the child’s future social and emotional behaviours and responses to the caregiver and others, as well as their sense of security to explore and experience their surrounding worlds (Capuzzi et al., 2016).

Subsequently, children of insecure attachment styles may not be as willing or socially and emotionally competent as securely attached children to take risks, learn new things and face new challenges. As such, it is considered that their general development is influenced by the type of attachment they experienced with attachment figure(s).

Bowlby’s theory on attachment was later complemented and supplemented by his colleague, Mary Ainsworth, who studied attachment in a systematic and scientific way. In Reading G, you will read about the ‘Strange Situation’ experiment, which was set out to research infants’ reactions toward a stranger and the departure and return of their caregiver (Sigelman & Rider, 2017). Based on the infants’ behaviours and responses, the quality of attachment is categorised into four types – secure, resistant, avoidant, and disorganised – which are believed to influence individuals’ interpersonal behaviours and subsequent development, such as the development of attachment to friends during childhood and adolescence, and to romantic partners later on.

The following table outlines examples of adult interpersonal behaviours that may reflect the characteristics of each attachment style. During the counselling process, you may recognise the following characteristics in your clients’ behaviour, both in how they describe their interpersonal relationships outside of counselling sessions and in the therapeutic relationship.

Contributions And Limitations in Counselling

Attachment theory provides a framework for understanding clients presenting issues and challenges, which could be reflecting ineffective coping strategies or underlying emotional and relational difficulties. Attachment theory highlights that early important relationships with caregivers influence subsequent emotional well-being. Problems in those early relationships and exposure to childhood traumatic experiences may lead to difficulties in a person’s sense of self and emotional regulation, which are important for developing and maintaining later relationships. Relationship quality at each step of development also affects relationship quality at the next step, as illustrated in the following diagram:

^{Simpson et al., 2007, as cited in Sigelman et al., 2019, p. 571}

As such, counsellors can help clients to consider their past relational experiences and how these experiences may have impacted current interpersonal behaviour. This usually involves assessing clients’ relational patterns of significant relationships throughout their lifespan, particularly with their family of origin, peers, and intimate relationships, to gain insight into possible behavioural patterns in relationships (Reeves, 2013). The following questions may be asked once you have built up a sufficient rapport with a client to ascertain whether they may have experienced difficult attachment interactions in early childhood:

Attachment theory is often used to conceptualise a client’s relationship difficulties and help the client understand behaviours that may lead to dysfunctional interpersonal relationships – outside of counselling sessions and in the therapeutic relationship. Remember that clients are likely to exhibit similar interpersonal behaviours in their relationship with the counsellor, which can impact the counselling process and outcomes. For instance, consider a client who seems extra ‘needy’, wanting to please the counsellor (e.g., agreeing to actions but not following through), and/or is reluctant to finish appointments on time. Counsellors who understand attachment theory may consider these behaviours to reflect an insecure attachment style and help clients recognise the impacts of such behavioural patterns on the counselling relationship and their relationship with others.

Although attachment theory suggests the potential lasting impact of earlier relationships on a person’s development and future relationships, counsellors need to note that change and improvement are possible. Helping clients understand how their past relational patterns may be affecting their behaviours or responses is the first step and can help reduce shame around presenting issues. (Nevertheless, counsellors need to be mindful not to ‘diagnose’ a client of their attachment style, even if they may seem to behave in accordance with insecure or resistant attachment styles). As illustrated in the following case study, counsellors can help clients by providing a secure, safe therapeutic environment and modelling an accepting caring relationship. Counsellors may also support clients in developing coping and emotion regulation skills that will help them build positive relationships with others.

Unlike Freud’s or Erikson’s, Bowlby’s interest was not in the stages of development. He took a specific focus on the interpersonal dynamics of earlier relationships. As such, attachment theory may not have as much to offer in terms of explaining development pathways or understanding stressful transitions in life. While attachment theory helps to bring attention to factors that may affect children's social and emotional well-being, it does not “provide clear directions for practitioners in terms of how and when to address attachment needs” (McLean, 2016).

Because attachment theory focuses primarily on the relationship between infants and their mothers, it has been criticised for not considering other attachments developed around the same time (e.g., father; siblings) and their influences on a child’s development. A literal application of this theory may mean that a child who has grown up without competent care of their mother (e.g., due to death or lack of competence) is expected to develop various problems in their lives. However, placing too much emphasis on the role of attachment in earlier relationships may lead to a lack of consideration of many other factors that can influence an individual’s development and learning throughout the lifespan.

In sum, children are unlikely to develop normally if they never have the opportunity to form an attachment or if their first relationships in life are repeatedly severed. By contrast, a secure attachment during infancy has many positive implications for intellectual, social and emotional development. Yet you must avoid concluding that infants who are securely attached to their caregivers are forever blessed – or that infants who are insecurely attached to their caregivers are doomed.

First, affectionate ties to another parent, siblings or grandparents can compensate for insecure parent-infant relationships (Kochanska & Kim, 2013). Second, attachment quality changes, and early attachments may have no long-term consequences if they change later – if stressful life events such as divorce and illness convert secure attachments into insecure ones, or if positive life changes make insecure attachments more secure (Beijersbergen, Juffer, Bakermans-Kranenburg, & van IJzendoorn, 2012; Weinfield, Sroufe, & Egeland, 2000). Internal working models are just that – working models are subject to revision based on later social experiences (Sroufe, Egeland, Carlson, & Collins, 2005).

^{Sigelman et al., 2019, p. 571}

Additionally, Bowlby’s findings may not be generalisable to other socio-cultural contexts in which parenting practices differ, and the care of children may be the active responsibility of multiple persons (Sigelman et al., 2019). As such, counsellors must be aware of the limitations of attachment theory and remember that many people thrive and develop great capacities despite adverse childhood experiences. People can and do learn new social skills and attitudes in later interactions with others, not only with parents.

What Is Your Attachment Style?

Knowing whether we are secure, anxious or avoidant in our attachment patterns gives us a vocabulary with which to get on top of some very tricky dynamics and helps us grow.

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While Freud and Erikson focused on emotional, psychological, and social development, Piaget was concerned with the way the capacity for thought differed at various stages of development. Piaget revolutionised the way we look at child development by proposing that children think differently to adults, and by recognising that children actively construct their knowledge, contributing to their own development through manipulation and exploration (Berk, 2014):

Piaget believed that children’s cognitive abilities develop as they adjust to meet environmental demands, an inborn tendency known as adaptation (Sigelman et al., 2019). Within adaptation are two complementary processes: assimilation and accommodation.

Assimilation refers to the processing of new information by applying what is already ‘known’ (whether or not this leads to accurate understanding), whereas accommodation is the modification of what is already known in order to better fit with new experiences.

For example, imagine Vanitha is learning to operate a smartphone for the first time. She is adapting to the demand for smartphone use in the modern world. Through assimilation, she is able to recognise the symbol for making a call, because it is similar to the ‘call’ button on her previous mobile. However, she needs to accommodate her understanding of how to enter a phone number because there are no physical number buttons on her new phone.

As we encounter new experiences that are inconsistent with what we already know, Piaget suggested that we engage in both assimilation and accommodation to resolve these ‘mental conflicts’ in order to achieve a stable state of ‘equilibrium’ – when what we know is consistent with our experience with the external world.

Piaget’s Schema: Accommodation and Assimilation of New Information

The following video describes Piaget's theory of how a schema is a cognitive framework or concept that helps organise and interpret information. Jean Piaget, who coined the term, argued that we construct our experiences into schemata so we can make sense of the world.

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Piaget also proposed four stages of cognitive development, which describe cognitive changes – through assimilation and accommodation – from childhood to adolescence:

^{Adapted from Sigelman et al., 2019, pp. 73-74}

It is important to note that the age range associated with each stage is not definite, as Piaget believed that children’s cognitive development stage is more associated with their reasoning instead of age (Sigelman et al.). Whilst Piaget thought all children go through these stages, he acknowledged that they did so at varying speeds; some children may be faster than others. Piaget’s theory was one of the most influential in exploring human cognitive development.

Contributions and Limitations in Counselling

According to Berk (2014), Piaget believed that children develop steadily and gradually throughout these stages and that the experiences in one stage form the foundation for movement to the next. As a stage theorist, Piaget believed that everyone must pass through each stage before starting the next one. This implies that older children and even adults may process information in ways that are characteristic of younger children if they have not successfully completed a particular stage. This could lead to illogical thinking, faulty beliefs, egocentric interpretation of events, and cognitive errors (Sigelman et al., 2019).

Piaget’s theory can help counsellors to understand that clients of different ages and stages think in qualitatively different ways. Although you will not often apply Piaget’s cognitive theory in your counselling practice unless you go on to specialise in working with children or adolescents, it is important to remember that adults may not reach the formal operational stage and may effectively be operating cognitively at an earlier stage. It can be helpful to keep this in mind as we tailor our communication and counselling strategies to each client’s individual needs and level of cognitive functioning (Capuzzi, Stauffer, & O’Neil, 2016). Counsellors may also use Piaget’s theory to support and educate parents in regard to age-appropriate parenting and understanding their children’s thinking.

Let’s look at a case example.

Piaget’s theory has had a substantial influence on the field of developmental psychology, as well as education, and has convinced many of the relevance of understanding cognitive development (Berk, 2014). In particular, his theory challenged the idea that children are merely ‘immature’ versions of adults by demonstrating that children’s understanding of the world is fundamentally different from that of adults and that young children’s thinking is different to that of older children (Lilienfeld et al., 2019). Piaget’s contention that children are active learners also fostered the recognition that cognitive development is not a passive process (you may remember activity versus passivity as one of the aspects that developmental theories differ on).

However, Piaget’s theory is not without its limitations. Some of the most common criticisms levelled at Piaget are (Berk, 2014; Sigelman et al., 2019):

• That he underestimated the abilities of infants and young children.
• That performance on many of Piaget’s tasks can be improved with training and adult teaching, rather than learning by discovery, as he suggested.
• Performance may not be the best measure of cognitive development. Some children in Piaget’s research may have been competent but simply not demonstrated this during his tests.
• As a stage theorist, Piaget is challenged by subsequent research that undermines the contention that cognitive development should be described in stages, particularly when changes in development are often subtle, lengthy, and not abrupt.
• Like Freud’s and Erikson’s, Piaget’s theory describes development but does not provide a clear explanation for how it comes about. However, he did recognise that cognitive development involves an interaction between nature (the innate tendency of adaptation) and nurture (adapting to the demands of the environment).
• Piaget gave limited consideration to social influences (e.g., the impact of social interaction with adults on children’s cognitive development) and how cognitive processes may differ by culture. Hence his theory may not be generalisable across cultures. (In further learning, you will explore another cognitive theory, Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory, which specifically considers social and cultural influences on learning).

Piaget's Theory of Cognitive Development

Review Piaget's theory of cognitive development with this informative video. 

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Humanistic psychology is “a theoretical perspective that emphasises the innate goodness of people and a tendency toward growth and self-determination as motivating forces for cognition and behaviour” (Sigelman et al., 2019, p. 68). In contrast to two major fields of psychology at the time – psychoanalytic and behaviourist – humanistic psychology focusses on the human capacity for creativity, growth, and choice. From this perspective, development is not dominated by unconscious forces. Rather, individuals have a natural tendency to self-actualise (fulfil their potential), provided they have an environment conducive to growth. You will be learning more about this when we look at the person-centred approach to counselling later in your diploma. For now, we will focus on one particular concept that emerged in early humanistic theory: Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

Unlike the previous theories outlined in this module, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs focuses more on human motivation than human development.

According to Maslow, human thought and behaviours are driven by five ascending levels of need, in which lower needs must be satisfied reasonably well before the higher needs:

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is usually presented in a pyramid, as in the following figure:

^{Adapted from Duchesne et al., 2013, as cited in Sigelman et al., 2019, p. 69}

As you can see, there are two main types of needs: basic needs and growth needs. Basic needs comprise of both physiological and psychological (safety, belonging and love, and esteem) needs that, when unmet, cause unpleasant states of deficiency; as such, they are also referred to as deficiency needs (Sigelman et al., 2019). Maslow believed that people are driven (i.e., motivated) to behave or think in ways that help them reduce such deficits when they are experienced. A simple example is that if you are hungry while reading this module, you will most likely struggle to continue reading and will feel motivated to look for food to satisfy your hunger. Furthermore, failure to meet basic needs could lead to compromised health. Deprivation of physiological needs, for example, may lead to disease and death, while deprivation of psychological needs can have detrimental effects on mental well-being (Sigelman et al.).

Growth needs (or being needs), on the other hand, are not necessary for survival but are associated with life satisfaction. According to Maslow, meeting basic needs is not enough to feel satisfied – individuals are motivated to strive for self-actualisation (Sigelman et al., 2019). A self-actualised person is described as “creative, spontaneous, and accepting of themselves and others. They are also self-confident but not self-centred” (Lilienfeld et al., 2019, p. 588). Proposed examples of self-actualisation persons, as per Maslow’s standard, include Abraham Lincoln, Helen Keller, and Mahatma Gandhi. However, Maslow believed that self-actualisation is rarely achieved:

Contributions And Limitations in Counselling

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs can help counsellors recognise the range of needs that a client may have and which may not be adequately addressed. Once identified, these can guide the counselling strategy. Based on this hierarchy, unmet lower needs should be addressed first, which might involve referring clients to an appropriate service that offers assistance for that level of need. For instance, if the client is homeless and unemployed (unmet physiological and safety needs), they will not likely have sufficient resources to address self-esteem issues. The counsellor can support them to meet these needs and help stabilise by referring the client to services such as homelessness and employment services.

Similarly, a woman in a violent relationship will generally need assistance to address safety and security needs before working on other issues. Let’s look at an example of how a counsellor might use Maslow’s hierarchy of needs to understand a child’s school refusal behaviour.

From a humanistic perspective, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs sheds light on what might be important for a person’s well-being rather than on what makes people psychologically unwell (Sigelman et al., 2019). His model helps conceptualise different levels of need that drive behaviour and their relationships with each other. Counsellors who use Maslow’s hierarchy of needs actively look for strengths that will help clients thrive and believe in clients' capacities to make positive choices. This is often demonstrated through viewing the client as the ‘expert’ and the person who is primarily responsible for making positive changes (in contrast to the counsellor as the ‘expert’ who advises their clients what to do). This forms the central tenet of the person-centred approach that is widely applied in counselling today, as well as being influential in post-modern approaches to counselling (Corey, 2017).

However, as Sigelman and colleagues (2019) note, a major limitation of Maslow’s theory is the rigid sequence of needs. In reality, people may not strive to meet their basic needs in such order. For instance, volunteer firefighters override their safety needs to help others, while Nevid (2013) gives the example of an artist who may ignore the need for food and nourishment for days to complete a project. It may also be difficult to determine what need a particular behaviour is fulfilling, as it is possible that one behaviour could fulfil several needs and vice versa. Moreover, the universality of Maslow’s theory is questionable, as needs and life satisfaction are conceptualised differently across cultures (Sigelman et al.). With these in mind, counsellors must be cautious when using Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and not assume that clients seek to meet only these needs or rigidly apply this model without recognising individual and cultural variations.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs Explained

This video explains Maslow's theory, including its advantages and disadvantages. 

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Check your understanding of the content so far!

We have explored four influential developmental theories in this section: Freud’s psychoanalytic theory, Erikson’s psychosocial stages, Piaget’s cognitive developmental model (specifically his stages of development), and Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. For each theory, we explored its ideas about the factors that influence development and behaviour. We also discussed each theory’s contributions as well as limitations, including in the counselling context. With these in mind, counsellors need to continuously review their theoretical framework and extend their knowledge about human development. We turn to this topic next.

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